Study Guide for

Tomie DePaola’s Strega NonaA Musical

Presented by Maximum Entertainment in Association with Active Arts Theatre for Young Audiences

Table of Contents

Who is Tomie DePaola?

Strega Nona: A Brief History

About The Play

Pre-Show Activities

Post-Show Activities

Strega Nona Through the Curriculum

Fun Fact:

The set designer read the pop-up book

“Brava Strega Nona” for inspiration

when she was designing this show.

More information:www.tomie.com

TOMIE dePAOLA, HIS ART & HIS STORIESby Barbara Elleman with a preface by Trina Schart Hyman

Who is Tomie dePaola?(Pronounced Tommy da-Pow-la)

Quick Facts Born September 15, 1934ber 15, 1934ber Raised in Connecticut with two sisters and one brother Knew he wanted to write books when he was four years old was four years old was four Studied art in college and graduate school Illustrated over 200 books, written over 100 Over 6 million copies of his books have sold worldwide.

Born Raised in Connecticut

Kn

Studied art in college and graduate school Illustrated over 200 books, written over

Over 6 million copies of his books have sold

Strega Nona: A Brief History (From www.tomie.com)So, here’s the real scoop on how Strega Nona came about...

In the early 1970s, I was teaching in the theater department at what is now Colby-Saw-yer College in New Hampshire (where I live). My books were beginning to get noticed, so my editor at Prentice-Hall (now Simon & Schuster), Ellen Roberts, suggested that I look into re-telling a folk tale. Of course, I would also illustrate it.

Well, some months before at a required weekly college faculty meeting (I always sat in the back row with a legal pad and doodled. The administration thought I was tak-ing notes.), I was, as usual, doodling. I was “obsessed” with the Italian commedia dell’arte character Punchinello. So many of my doodles were of him - big nose, big chin.

On my pad, I drew the profi le, but suddenly I found I had drawn a head scarf. I put in the eye and the smiling mouth and continued to draw a little chubby body complete with long skirt and apron. And I scribbled the words “Strega Nona” next to the drawing.

I was tickled pink. She was so cute, so Italian, I thought I might be able to use her in a book someday. I pinned the doodle up on my studio wall.

Back to Ellen Roberts and her suggestion that I re-tell a folk tale.

“What was one of your favorite folk tales when you were a child?” she asked.

“The Porridge Pot story,” I answered immediately.“Why don’t you re-read it in a version that’s in the Public Domain and see if you’re inter-ested enough in it to re-tell it,” Ellen said.

So, I re-read the story. But, I didn’t really like it. Suddenly, LIGHT BULB TIME!

Maybe I could change PORRIDGE to PASTA and I could use my little Strega Nona (who was al-ready “telling” me who she was”).

I called Ellen to ask if it was “legal” to re-tell a story.

“Of course,” she said, “as long as the story is in the Public Domain.” (A story in the Public Domain is a story for which the copyright has expired or lapsed. Public Domain stories are usually very old.)

So, I started working on the text for STREGA NONA.

About This Production

Who makes the show happen?The Director is Tracy. Tracy isin charge of in charge of telling the actors whereto go on stage and how to make their characters interesting. She is the person whomakes sure everyone is doing a good job telling the story of the play.

The Actors are all of the people you saw on the stage. They work together as a team to rehearse the play, memorize their lines, and learn their songs. All of the actors went to school to learn how to perform.

The Set Designer is ASet Designer is ASet Designer ndrea. Andrea creates the world where the actors tell the story. She imagines and draws all of the pieces that you saw on the stage, the furniture and the painted fabric.

The Costume Designer is UlCostume Designer is UlCostume Designer ises. Ulises imagines the clothes that the actors are wearing to help become the characters. He draws and then sews the clothing.

The Producers are Eva and Nina. Eva and Nina hired all of the people involved with the show. They also work together to tell people all across the country about the show so they will want to come and watch it. about the show so they will want to come and watch it. about the show so they will want to come and watch it

telling the actors where

. She is the person who

Fun Fact:

The word for Grandmother in Italian is

“Nonna.” The character in the play is

named “Nona.”

Pre-Show Classroom Activities and Discussions:

Discussion Questions:What is theatre? What is the difference between live theatre and a movie or television?

Class Activity: Going to See a ShowSelect four volunteers to act as “performers.” Select two volunteers to act as “stagehands.” The rest of the class will act as the “audi-ence.” Step 1: Stagehands fl ash the lights in the classroom to indicate the performance is starting. And say the line “Everyone please take your seats.”Step 2: Performers enter by standing in front of the class. All of the performers sing “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star” or any other song or poem that everyone in the class knows. Step 3: The Audience applauds at the conclusion of the performance.Step 4: The Performers bow.Step 5: The Stagehands fl icker the lights to indicate the end of the show. Step 6: Rotate participants.

Fun Fact:

Actors are very superstit

ious and never wish

each other “Good Luck.” Instead they say

“Break a Leg” in hopes that sa

ying something

bad will make something good happen.

Imagine you are an actor on stage. What kind of part would you like to play? How would you like the audience to respond to your performance? Why do we applaud at the end of a performance?

Post-Show Classroom Activitiesand Discussions:

Discussion Questions:What What was the play about? was the play about? Were there differences betweenthe story in the book and the story in the play? What parts of the play were themost exciting?Which characWhich characWhich char ter did you enjoythe most? Why?Why do you think the director chose to use puppets along with live actors? Which parts of the set helped to tell the story? How?

Writing and Drawing Activity:Each student writes a letter to the actors.Dear Strega Nona Actors,My favorite part of the play was________________While watching your play I felt_________________because__________________________________I have drawn I have drawn I have dr a picture of the scene when _________If I could be in your play, I would like to play the part of _________because_______________________.Sincerely,________________After writing the letter, students can illustrate a scene from the play. We love hearing from our audiences! If you would like, please send these letters to Active Arts Theatre for Young Audiences, 6114 La Sal-le Avenue, #431, Oakland, CA 94611. Include your return address and your class will receive a note back from the actors!

Math: Estimation

When Big Anthony’s Pasta Pot overfl ows, the pasta fi lls the whole town. Big Anthony has a lot of eating to do! But how much exactly?

Step 1: Fill a jar with pasta (we recommend spirals).

Step 2: In groups, allow your students to estimate how many pieces of pasta are in the jar. Write down the estimates.

Step 3: Pour out the pasta in the jar into paper cups and pass out the paper cups, one per student. Pass out an addi-tional empty paper cup. The students must count their cup’s worth of pasta by moving the pasta from one cup to the oth-er and counting it piece by piece. The students write their results on the board. Teacher adds up the results to see which group estimated the closest to the actual.

Fun Facts:The Chinese ate pasta as early

as 5,000 B.C.There are over 600 shapes of pasta

eaten worldwide. To cook one billion pounds of pas-ta, you would need 2,021,452,000

gallons of water—enough to fi ll nearly 75,000 Olympic-size

swimming pools.(from the nibble.com)

Step 4: Imagine the central square in Paola, Italy. How many jars would it take to fi ll the central square? In front of the class, the Teacher explains that 1000 jars fi t in the central square. Through multiplica-tion, we fi nd out how much pasta Big Anthony had to actually eat.

Math: Strega Word Problems

1. If Big Anthony has 99 pieces of pasta in his hand and Stre-ga Nona adds one more, how many pieces of pasta will Big Anthony have? Anthony have?

2. Strega Nona has piled 200 pieces of wood on the wood pile. She is cold and wants to make a fi re, so she asks Big An-thony to bring her 1 piece of wood from the wood pile. How many pieces does she have left?

3. Big Anthony dances for six hours. He dances so much, he ruins one pair of shoes for every hour he dances. How many pairs of shoes does Big Anthony ruin?

4. Big Anthony wants to learn magic. He studies very hard and learns 49 spells. Strega Nona tells him that he will not be a real Strega until he learns 60 spells. How many more spells does Big Anthony have to learn to become a Strega?

5. Strega Nona is counting all of the people in the village. She counts 98 people. Then, she looks around and realizes She counts 98 people. Then, she looks around and realizes that Big Anthony and Bambolona are missing. How many people ac-tually live in the town?

Language: Let’s Learn Italian

Draw a line from the Italian word to the English word:

Molto Excuse Me

Si Si Thank You

Buon Giorno Yes Yes

Tutti Goodnight

Grazie Very

Prego Hello/Goodbye

Scusi You’re Welcome Ciao All

Buona Notte Good Day

Reading for Detail: Big Anthony and the Magic Ring by Tomie dePaolo

One day the sun began to shine a little brighter, the birds began to sing a little sweeter, and the fl owers began to bloom everywhere. Spring had come, and Big Anthony began to drag his feet.

“Anthony,” said Strega Nona, “whatever is the matter? You’re sleeping late. Your chores are half done, and every time I look at you, you’re gazing into space and sighing.”

“Oh, Strega Nona, I don’t know what’s wrong with me,” said Big Anthony. “Everything in rything in r my head is fuzzy.”

“I think you have spring fever,” said Strega Nona. “What you need is a little Night Life. Why don’t you go to the village dance tonight? It would perk you up.”

Big Anthony sighed again. “The village seems so far away,” he said. “And anyway, who would dance with me?”

“Bambolona the baker’s daughter, would,” said Strega Nona. “Why don’t you ask her when she brings the bread?”Questions:1. Wintertime in Calabria was:a) loud b) quiet c) cold d) helpful

2. People came to see Strega Nona to:a) buy bread b)go to the dance c)do chores d) solve their problems

3. List three signs that Spring had come:

4. Why is Big Anthony’s head fuzzy?a) He has a headache b) he needs glasses c) he has spring fever d) he ate too much pasta

5. Who does Strega Nona think will dance with Big Anthony?a) The baker’s daughter b) the entire village c) the birds d) a witch

Read the following section from “Big Anthony and the Magic Ring” and then answer the questions.

Wintertime w Wintertime w as very quiet in the little town in Calabria where Strega Nona (Grandma Witch) and her helper Big Anthony lived. People came to Strega Nona to help them solve their troubles. Big Anthony did his chores and tried to behave himself. And every morning Bambolona, the baker’s daughter, came to deliver the bread.

Art: Illustration

Step 1: Select a story that the class is all reading together. Step 2: Teacher reads aloud one scene from the story.Step 3: Using markers, crayons, or colored pencils, all of the students use their imagination to illustrate the same scene. Step 4: Each student describes what is in their drawing to a partner.

Drama: Acting out a Story

Step 1: Teacher reads a story aloud to the class.Step 2: As a class, brainstorm the characters in the story and the settings--locations in the story.Step 3: As a class, determine the plot--events in order with a clear beginning, middle and end. Step 4: Teacher breaks up the story into small segments and assigns each segment to a group of students.Step 5: Students must create a tableaux (frozen picture that tells a story) of the moment in the story.Step 6: All groups show their tableaux in front of the class in the order of the story.

Vocabulary: Illustration, Plot, Tableaux, Character, Setting

Tomie dePaola is a writer and an art-ist. Sometimes he writes his books and illustrates them, sometimes he illustrates other people’s books.

In the play “Strega Nona,” the actors took a story which was originally a book and acted it out.

Language: Strega Nona Word Find

C V Y O Q V K R K V U J H G V B P K C N K C X U O B Q P U C Q W J T R E O B Q P U C Q W J T R E

R P A W P S J M P O Z U E M A K P D T P A M F J S Y E S E Q A R C G C L I D H R T R H C E G I P F G A I C A J R T G C C T X A N T H O N Y O A C O X K G C A K S G T R X S P L A Y E I T A L Y G W T N P I D N D A A V L

ACTORANTHONYBAKERCHORESDANCEITALYMAGICPASTAPLAYPUPPETRINGSTREGA

Geography: Research

4. Name three major cities in Italy.

5. What are two kinds of food that Italy is famous for?

6. Italy borders on fi ve different Seas, name one of them.

7. How many people live in Italy?

8. What is the name of the mountain range located to the North of Italy?

Using the tools of the classroom and library, students in groups must answer the following questions:

1. In what country does Strega Nona take place?

2. Name three of the four countries that Italy borders.

3. What item of clothing is the country of Italy rough-ly shaped like?

Here are more ideas for Strega Nona related activities for all grade levels.

Middle Elementary:Act out the story of Strega Nona using tableauxWrite a class cookbook using your favorite pasta recipeWrite a short dialogue between two characters

Upper Elementary:Write and illustrate your own story about magic gone wrong and the consequencesStrega Nona read-a-loud with younger gradesResearch projects on different aspects of Italian cul-ture: food, music, theatre, art

Lower Elementary:Pasta ArtStrega Nona read-a- Strega Nona read-a-

loud with older gradesMake your own paper bag puppetsFreeze Dance with Italian Opera Music

Answer Key for Teachers

Word Problems Answers:1. 100 pieces of pasta2. 199 pieces of wood3. 6 pairs of shoes 3. 6 pairs of shoes

4. 11 spells5. 100 people live in the town

Language Answers:Molto=Very Si, Si=Yes, YesBuon Giorno=Good Day Tutti=AllGrazie=Thank You Prego=You’re WelcomeScusi=Excuse Me Ciao=Hello/GoodbyeBuona Notte=Good night

Geography Answers: 1. Italy. 2. France, Switzerland, Austria, Slovenia3. Boot 4. Rome, Venice, Florence, Naples, etc. 5. Pasta, Pizza, Spaghetti, Lasagna, Calzone, etc. 6. Adriatic, Mediterranean, Ionian, Tyrrhenian, and Ligurian 7. Approximately 58 million8. The Alps

Reading for Detail Answers: 1. a) quiet2. d) solve their problems3. sun shines, birds sing, fl ower bloom4. c) he has spring fever5. a) the baker’s daughter